Psalm 42 written by the sons of Korah. Psalms 42 and 43 go together. They share the same refrain. In fact they are joined together in some Hebrew manuscripts. Using the refrain “Hope thou in God” as a marker. David expresses his deep longing for God (42:1-5); his sad lament and dejection before God (42:6-11); and, his sure confidence in God (43:1-5). The three stanzas reveal the changing moods of the David: from longing and regret to perplexity, then to trust and assurance. the psalm is called a Maskil. It’s not clear what the word means. That’s why most versions don’t translate it. It comes from a Hebrew verb that means to make someone wise, or to instruct.
1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?
3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.
5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
6 My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.
8 By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me— a prayer to the God of my life.
9 I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”
10 My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
11 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
SECTIONS:
I Drought of the Soul -feels deep thirst
II Drowning of Soul -feels like he’s under water
III Deliverance from being downcast and disturbed by putting hope in God & praising him
THEME: When we are discouraged we need to bring our discouragement to God, hope in him and find reasons to praise him. Or longing for God in a wilderness situation
QUESTIONS:
Reflect on the images of a thirsty deer and flowing streams. Is thirst a pleasant sensation? What function does thirst serve? Is thirst necessary? How does all this relate to our desire for God?
Can you recall a time when you thirsted for God? What were the circumstances?
What does the absence of God feel like for you?
Why does the psalmist weep? What are people saying?
What does he ask himself?
What does the psalmist remind himself to do?
What do you think verse 7 means (deep calls to deep)?
What does verse 8 mean to you?
What does the psalmist recommend we do when we are downcast and depressed? Are you able to do these things when you feel down?
OTHER VERSES
John 4:14 “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
Isaiah 55:1 Come, all of you who thirst, come to the waters; and you without money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk, without money and without cost!
Jeremiah 31:25 for I will refresh the weary soul and replenish all who are weak.”
Jonah 2:3 For You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the current swirled about me. All Your breakers and waves swept over me.
We don’t know when the psalms were gathered into five books, but the separation dates back to before our oldest manuscripts, compiled in the Masoretic Text. This is the first psalm of Book Two; the psalms of Book Two share some general differences with the psalms of the Book One. In Book One of Psalms, 37 of the 41 are specifically attributed to David, and the four remaining are unattributed. David is the only known psalmist in Book One.
In Book Two of Psalms, David authored 18 of the 31, more than half. But now, other psalmists appear: Asaph and Solomon have one each Seven (perhaps eight) psalms belong to the sons of Korah. Three psalms have no author listed.
The sons of Korah were Levites, from the family of Kohath. By David’s time it seems they served in the musical aspect of the temple worship (2 Chronicles 20:19). Korah led a rebellion of 250 community leaders against Moses during the wilderness days of the Exodus (Numbers 16). God judged Korah and his leaders and they all died, but the sons of Korah remained (Numbers 26:9-11). Perhaps they were so grateful for this mercy that they became notable in Israel for praising God.
Sometimes we get trapped in discouragement. The psalmist didn’t say, “My soul is cast down and that’s how it is. There is nothing I can do about it.” He challenged his soul on why he should be so cast down. There were some valid reasons for discouragement; but there were many more reasons for hope.
Many things bothered him: distance from home and the house of God (2,6); taunting unbelievers (3,10); memories of better days (4); the present absence of past spiritual thrills (4); overwhelming trials (7); God’s seemingly slow response (9). Still, it was as if the psalmist said, “Those are not good enough reasons to be cast down when I think of the greatness of God and the help of His favor and presence.”
The psalmist spoke to himself. He didn’t feel filled with praise at the moment. Yet he was confident that as he praised, he could to direct his hope in God, that praise would come forth.
Therefore I will remember You from the land of the Jordan: This explains why he was so far from the house of God and could not appear at the tabernacle or temple. He was far north of Jerusalem, in the heights of Hermon. “We know the chief thing that was bothering him. He was far from Jerusalem and its temple worship on Mount Zion, and therefore felt himself to be cut off from God.” (Boice) The Hill Mizar: “‘Mizar’ is probably the name of a hill otherwise unknown, and specifies the singer’s locality more minutely, though not helpfully to us.” (Maclaren)
Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls: Perhaps the psalmist thought of a waterfall and how the water plunged down into a deep pool at the base. Maybe it’s a powerful and poetic description of despair. “One wave of sorrow rolls on me, impelled by another. But, F.B. Meyer thought of this as the depths of God answering to the depths of human need.
His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me: The psalmist came to a place of greater confidence, secure in God’s goodness to him in the daytime or at night. In the frightening night, he would have the gracious comfort of His song to be with him. The psalmist senses God sustaining him, but his battle is not over. There is the constant oppression of the enemy. The taunt, “Where is your God?” continued from them.
In psalm 42, we learn from the deer’s thirst for water. This visually helps us understand the zeal and longing that we are to have for God. Just as a deer needs the streams of waters for survival and pants for refreshing water, so our souls should long for God. The thirst is so strong that the psalmist asks when he can go and meet with God.
Testing our thirst is one of the best tests to determine our love for God. Do we thirst to talk about spiritual things? Do we thirst to study God’s revealed word? Do we thirst to worship the Lord? Do we thirst to study the word with others? Do we have the thirst that causes us to ask “When can I go and meet with God?” This is exactly what Jesus meant when he told the Pharisees to learn “I desire mercy and not sacrifice”(Matthew 9:13). The question is not that we show up, but if we want to show up.
We can’t have a thirst without trying something out first. I don’t have a strong craving (thirst) for potato chips until after I have had tasted the first one. The thirst dies the longer we remove ourselves away from a particular action. Thirsting for the living God only begins when we realize that it is a matter of our own soul’s life and death. Just as the deer requires water for life and therefore thirsts for it, so also we will thirst for the living waters of God if we will see its need.
The psalmist’s desire is so strong that it can only be quenched when he goes to “meet with God.” This is the drive and goal of life. The psalmist realizes that worship, knowledge, and reading are the ways to be with God. These are the only ways to get to experience God until we can see him face to face.
This thirst is sustained even through his personal times of oppression and skepticism. We see the psalmist’s pain in the words, “My tears have been my food day and night.” We also see the scorn the psalmist is enduring as others say to him all day long “Where is your God?” He is remembering the good times with God even though he is enduring an undisclosed oppression.
“Put your hope in God.” The psalmist is reminding himself to put his hope and trust in the Lord. When are backs are to the wall and things do not seem to be working out the way we expect, we need to repeatedly tell ourselves to put our trust in God. The repetition of the phrase should tell us that it is not going to be enough to tell ourselves to trust God once. We have to keep reminding ourselves of this! Things will not go according to plan and how we deal with it is a test to our ability to trust in the Lord.
Rather than keeping his focus on himself, he turns his attention to God and calls God to send forth “your light and your truth” and “let them guide me.” The psalmist offers a beautiful call of dependence upon God to guide him through his turmoil. Rather than allow our emotions to spin us into despair, we must keep our eyes heavenward awaiting God’s deliverance.
Perhaps the most fascinating part of this psalm is the ending. The psalmist declares that even though he does not understand and feels rejected and oppressed, he will continue to praise God. God is his joy and his delight. When God is what really matters in life, then we may lose the things of this world but we will always have what is most important and what brings us lasting joy: God. When the going in our lives do get tough, we have to be tough with ourselves to get through our misery. Our emotions will lead us into self-pity and agony. Keeping our eyes on what matters will help us endure till our suffering ends.
Not sure of website where I read this:
Here are some of the truest, most beautiful words ever written: “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.” Some people think hope is an emotion, but true hope is a discipline. It’s a determination to believe in God’s reality and power, even when the world seems to be crashing down around you. Hope flies in the face of calamity, saying, “The world can do its worst to me. But still I will hope.
I gave a sermon on how sometimes Christians get depressed. The next day someone called to tell me I was wrong. He said, “A Christian has no business being depressed.” He was sure that to be depressed showed a lack of faith. Fortunately, the Bible does not share that view. It presents God’s people just the way they are: sometimes angry, confused, and sometimes bitter or depressed. According to 1 Kings 19, the prophet Elijah was so depressed that he asked God to let him die.
When my mother died suddenly after a one-week illness, and when three years later one of my brothers was killed at age 24, my dad became very depressed. Throughout my years of ministry I have met many Christians who, like the psalmist, were “downcast” and “disturbed.” It’s not something to be ashamed of or to feel guilty about. When we become depressed, we have to do what the psalmist did: we have to hope in God. He provides the help we need, sometimes through others whom he equips with gifts of counseling and understanding. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Be assured that God cares about how you feel. Ask him to open your eyes to the provisions he makes available.
Gotquestions.org
Depression is often viewed as a persistent feeling of sadness. Of course, it is okay to be sad. We live in a world of pain, and Jesus wept over the death of Lazarus. There’s no need to always pretend that things are okay when they are not.
There are many biblical examples of men of God struggling with sadness, even to the point of depression. David, a “man after [God’s] own heart” did not gloss over his sadness. Both Moses (Numbers 11:15) and Elijah (1 Kings 19:3–5), two heroes of the faith, confessed to God that they preferred to die than live in their current reality. Neither was rebuked by God for his feelings; rather, both were met with God’s love and provision. The Bible is not shy about admitting the realities of human emotion. Sadness is part of life.
As believers, we are exhorted to see the greater reality of God’s plan even in the midst of our sadness and depression. This world is fallen and often painful and depressing. But God is far greater. He is at work, victoriously. Moses and Elijah received God’s provision and experienced His refreshing. Shortly after pouring out his sadness, David praised God. Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Take heart in God’s care. That doesn’t mean pasting on a smile or ignoring the feeling of emptiness that depression brings. It doesn’t mean neglecting to treat depression through counseling or medication. It doesn’t mean ignoring the hurts that have led to depression. Sometimes depression can even be a lifelong struggle.
What taking heart means bringing our pain to God and trusting him. It mean believing that what He says about Himself and us is true, even when we don’t feel like it is. We acknowledge the depravity of the world, but we also acknowledge the sufficiency of God.
It is not wrong to be depressed. But it is wron to give up on God when we are depressed. “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
Churchleaders.com
There are seven things you never say to a Christian who is depressed. None of these things are wrong or necessarily come from evil intentions. However, they come off as judgmental. I hope this becomes clear as you read:
1-Just snap out of it.- Depression is not an act of the will. It is an interplay between the mind and the brain that you can’t snap out of. Don’t you think that people who are depressed would “just snap out of it” if it were that easy? Remember, they don’t want to be depressed. It is the worst torture that one can possibly imagine.
2- Just think positively- Most of the time a depressed person can’t think positively. That’s why they’re depressed. Sometimes they are in a situation that is a sad reality like Covid-19, or the state of the world without God, or a death in the family or the loss of a job. When you are in deep depression it’s hard to think positive.
3-Confess your sins – Some churches teach that if a Christian is depressed there is something wrong with that person. They think it’s your choice and you should confess you sin. Or that they think sins are the cause of your depression. This is not biblical. Everyone sins, but not everyone is depressed. Even if they are into drugs, alcohol, etc. bringing this up will only harden them and make it worse.You get cancer, or you get heart disease, and no one asks, “What did you do wrong?”
4- You should be on medication-Sometimes that’s not the answer and sometimes it is, but you are not a doctor.
5- Don’t say you’ve been through worse. Suffering is relative. There are always going to be people who have it worse than you. This isn’t the issue. It’s how you perceive and internalize your suffering relative to who you were before. For some, the loss of a job can make them suicidal. For others (who some who live in Africa) even the loss of a child is expected and absorbed with less depression,
6-God won’t give you more than you can handle- There is nowhere in the Bible that says God will not give us more than we can handle. It says that he will in temptation provide a way of escape (1 Cor. 10:13). But never does it say that God will not give us more pain and suffering than we can handle.
7-Depression is a sin- This always comes from a person who has never experienced real depression. Once you have, you would never say something like this again. Unfortunately, this often comes from those who feel that it’s their job to deliver us from this evil. But is depression a sin? I don’t think so.
Don’t be like Job’s friends who by what they said only made him feel worse. Silence, or putting your arm around the depressed, is the best advice. There may be a time for verbal inquiry, but this needs to come naturally and without judgment. You’re not given a podium to preach to the depressed; you’re given arms to hold them. Even if this doesn’t “work,” your goal should not be to bring them out of their depression. Your goal should be to be there for them. It is a terrible burden to bear when this is a loved one, I know. But this is how we bear the burdens of the depressed.
Corechristianity.com (David Murray)
I’ve found that sometimes it’s the most godly people who are likely to suffer with depression. That’s because they are more sensitive to sin and to evil in themselves and their world. They are also the ones most overcommitted in their service God. They are special targets for satanic attacks.
But just because there are spiritual symptoms, this doesn’t mean there is a spiritual cause of a depression. Just because someone is feeling dark, desolate or abandoned, doesn’t necessarily mean there is a spiritual cause. These may be a consequences of a physical or cognitive problem.
A depressed person feels hopeless. Give them hope. Help them to see this is a normal abnormality for a Christian living in a fallen world and a fallen body. Give them hope that they can glorify God in the darkness. And give them hope of the new heavens and the new earth in which God’s people will enjoy a new body, a new mind, a new heart, and new emotions.
https://www.cru.org/us/en/blog/life-and-relationships/emotions/to-the-depressed-christian.html
For me (Mary), depression came with the winter, though warning signs could be felt and seen much sooner. A born and bred Southern girl, I’d gotten married, started a new job and moved across the country to Minnesota all within two weeks, and just in time for the cold. I was tired. Really tired. I was edgy and emotional and anxious. I began noticing that I felt exactly like it looked outside — gray and miserable. Numb. I sank further and further until finally breaking down one day at a work conference. I just could not go through the motions anymore. I felt like I was dying inside.
If you’re in the thick of the dark and lonely place that is depression, I wish I could wrap my arms around you and cry with you, because I know how badly you hurt. I am a Christian, but depression tempted me to distrust God. I was desperately seeking deliverance. God seemed to be withholding it. Why will you not lift me out of this pit? I’d cry. Are you not a deliverer? Why do the voices of despair sound so much louder than yours?
Not only can depression make you question God or feel distant from Him, it can also make navigating Christian community difficult. Depression is more challenging for Christians because there stigmas associated with depression in many Christian communities. When people don’t understand depression, it makes seeking help hard. Depression can distort your perception of reality or make you doubt your judgment. It’s crucial to be able to recognize what is and is not true about depression. Many well-meaning people may actually give you bad advice because they don’t understand depression.
Depression is often triggered by stressors or negative environmental factors, but that doen’t mean it is not real. Physical illness is also triggered by these same things. Stress can cause ulcers and increase the risk of a heart attack, very serious illnesses that, like depression, need treatment, not condemnation.
Though there is often an environmental and emotional component to depression, the underlying issue is usually biological. This is one reason two people may be going through the same or similar situations and one may develop depression while the other doesn’t. The brain, is complex, and not even the most advanced researchers fully understand exactly what causes it.
Once, after I shared my testimony with a group of students at my university, a friend came up to me and said, “When I feel like that, I try to figure out what I’ve done wrong that I need to confess.”Even in Jesus’ day, people were eager to ascribe blame for illness and disability, but He challenged their assumptions. We see this in John 9:1-3. People who are depressed are already dealing with enough without also being shamed for not doing “enough.”Churches often rally around people going through physical illness, bringing them meals and showing them grace. Sadly, mental illness is often met with judgment instead of compassion and support.
Suffering is a universal experience, so church leaders need to be well-equipped to care for people who are going through hardship. When you’ve walked with God through something as difficult as depression, it gives you a greater ability to walk with others through difficult times. Not only can depression increase a person’s level of compassion and empathy, it can also provide a new perspective on life that equips them for Christian leadership.
I have heard people say something along the lines of, “But you do not look depressed.” I’m not sure what exactly people think depression should look like, but depression can look a lot of different ways.
You can wish you no longer existed but look fine to the people around you.
When you are experiencing a mental health crisis and feeling isolated, it’s very easy to forget that God is literally within you. The Holy Spirit is the presence of God Himself, living and active in the life of everyone who trusts in Jesus. The Bible provides many examples of people experiencing depression, darkness and frustration with God. He is not angered by your honest words. God wants your relationship with Him to be authentic. His mercy reigns even in your brokenness.
Depression makes it hard to make some of the “right Christian choices” you might normally. I did not trust God, make a gratitude list or even recite prayers and Scripture during my darkest moments. My shield of faith often lay next to me on the ground, unused. I wish I had done those things. But in my not doing them, God taught me the most valuable lesson of my life: His love for me is solely dependent on His character, grace and goodness.
One of the hardest things about depression is that it takes away your ability to feel hopeful. I remember, during one of my lowest times, having an overwhelming feeling that nothing would ever be good again. Rationally, I knew that was not true, but my emotions and anxious thoughts were screaming that there was no hope. Depression plays tricks with your thoughts and emotions. So I find myself in tears whenever I hear people say they want to kill themselves because I’ve been there. Empathy is powerful. It enables us to comfort others and know how to pray for them. Ultimately, God will use us to bring hope to others who are hurting because we’ve been where they are and made it to the other side.
If you are suffering from depression or another mental illness, know this: God cares deeply when you suffer. You are in pain, you may wonder where God is. He is right there with you, just as He always is, whether or not you can feel it.
Some people will never fully understand the truth about depression. Seek out people you feel safe with and who can support you without judgment. It is important to have people encourage you, walk beside you, pray for you, and remind you of the truth of God’s love and faithfulness during this difficult season. With the love and support from God and the people around you, you can get through this time.
https://www.cru.org/us/en/blog/life-and-relationships/emotions/anxiety-help.html
In December 2013, I didn’t have the desire to exercise, socialize, leave the house, eat or even get out of bed. The only thing I felt like doing was sleeping. Sleep was where I didn’t develop constant fears, worries or anxious thoughts. Tears fell one by one. Before I knew it, an hour had passed and my pillow was completely soaked.
Soon after, I flipped through the Bible for comfort and read this verse: “How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart?” (Psalm 13:2) For me, anxiety has been an ongoing battle spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically. Some days the birds are chirping and the sky is an extra hue of blue, but then I encounter those unexpected days. The days in which everything suddenly seems suffocating, depressing and the idea of carrying on with my life seems impossible. And I’ve discovered there isn’t a “10 simple steps” solution to get rid of anxiety.
In Be Anxious for Nothing, Joyce Meyer says, “He has become a butterfly, one of the freest of God’s creatures. He can soar through the air on beautiful wings. But to emerge from that cocoon is a struggle, one that is necessary for the butterfly’s full transformation and development.” As I reflect on this profound statement, it reminds me of my current struggle with anxiety. I am in my cocoon phase impatiently waiting to spread my wings, bottling up my emotions.
“If we didn’t struggle through some things,” Joyce says. “we would never develop the strength and stamina we need to survive in this world.” But then God reminded me that He is preparing my wings during this season of waiting and reminding me to put trust in Him in the midst of anxiety. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) We can’t always see where our future wings are going to take us, but God promises there’s something better up ahead, we just have to trust Him.
https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/5-ways-to-hope-in-god-when-you-feel-hopeless.html
Hope is the belief that something beneficial is to come, the idea that what is currently seen is not the end of the story, but that something greater is ahead. Hope is believing that the sun will indeed come out again, that there is still beauty in this life to be seen, and it is coming up ahead down the path. Hope in itself is the faith that God has plans for us, and that they are good. For any story in the Bible, hope is an important component of the journey.
Drawing close to God is important. The Lord desires to have a deep and meaningful relationship with us. Seeking His heart in such times can offer clarity and direction as well.
Hope requires patience and the willingness to wait for an answer, solution, or change. That waiting period is not a punishment, rather it’s a time for a change within or work to be done. This patience will yield blessing and reward in the process, not just the ending.
It is imperative in times of feeling hopeless to recall how He has been faithful in the past, and how He will do it again. We can find our hope in Him that just as He came through in the past so He will prove Himself trustworthy again. Listing victories, you have seen Him do will be a comfort. King David would recall the triumphs he had seen God do, and he would boost his own hope in those glories. Trust and believe that God will be faithful and that He is writing yet another story of His victory in your life. This is what it means to abide in hope. In times where everything appears to be completely hopeless, we can confidently stand in the security that He is not finished working.
SONG: As the Deer, This Is The Air I Breathe- Michael W. Smith, Not Right Now-Jason Gray (This song is especially when you are deeply grieving loss of someone you love. We all need a period of mourning)that needs to be expressed) Do It Again- Elevation Worship, Great Is Thy Faithfulness, Thy Will Be Done -Hillary Scott